Family Crisis
by Kali1
Summary: Loki has a terrible premonition dream. Will it come true, or, can he prevent it from happening?
1. Chapter 1

**Family Crisis**

Part 1

By Kali

It started with a nightmare. A horribly vivid, visceral nightmare.

"Can we watch a movie when we get back, Daddy?" Fenrir asked as they walked home.

"Sure! We even have the snacks for it and everything!" Loki grinned, looking down into the bag of scrumptious treats he carried. "It'll be fun!"

About a block to their home, Fenrir froze in his tracks. "Daddy…" Fenrir whimpered.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

Fenrir's only response was mournful howling.

Loki dropped the bag, and knelt next to his son. "Fenrir, what's wrong?" Loki asked fearfully. Getting no response, but howling, he turned to look towards the gate of the house. He saw something seeping from it, something red. He started to frantically run towards the gate. The time it took to reach it felt like eons to him. And after he reached it, he saw the source of the seeping, red pool, and screamed.

He moved forward, pleading, "Please be alive! Please be alive!" But, he knew full well that, that wasn't possible. There was just way too much blood.

"He's dead, Daddy," Fenrir whimpered.

"I know." Loki knelt down next to the crumpled form, and tearfully embraced it. His other son was already cold to the touch. "Yamino," he sobbed.

Loki awoke to find himself sobbing into his pillow. Shaken, and fully remembering the dream, he got up and frantically headed towards Yamino's room. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw his child blissfully sleeping.

'That dream felt so real,' Loki thought to himself. 'Was it just a dream, or something more?' Loki pondered. He stared at his sleeping child for several minutes, before making a decision. He would stay with him tonight, just to make sure. Quietly he climbed up into the bed, and struggled to go back to sleep.

* * *

Yamino woke up, feeling something poke his stomach. Reaching down he realized that what was poking him was a foot, a small foot. Quickly he pulled away the covers and was shocked to see his father sleeping fitfully next to him. "Master Loki? What are you doing here?" But the child god stayed asleep. Yamino sighed, "I'll take you back to your bed, Master Loki." He gently picked his father up, trying not to wake him. But that was all for naught. 

"Yamino?" Loki asked groggily. "You can put me down now."

"I'm sorry, Master Loki. I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's okay. What am I doing in here?" Loki asked, a moment later he remembered the dream.

"I was hoping that you could answer that question for me, Master Loki."

"Oh, um…. I'm sorry if I disturbed your sleep, Yamino."

"It's okay. I needed to start making breakfast, anyways. Why don't you go back to sleep, sir?"

"Uh, no. I want to help, Yamino," Loki insisted, barely stifling a yawn.

"Huh?"

"Please? Come on… Father and son cooking, it'll be fun!"

"Uh, are you sure that you aren't too tired, Master Loki?"

"I'm fine," Loki smiled, lying through his teeth. He had no intention of letting his son out of his sight. "Can we make some coffee first, Yamino?"

* * *

"Hi, everybody! What's for breakfast?" Narugami cheerfully asked, only to be jumped by an overprotective Loki. 

"Stay away from my family!" Loki screamed, as he lunged for Narugami's throat.

"Master Loki!" Yamino exclaimed as he quickly grabbed onto his father and pulled him away from Narugami.

"Loki, what in the hell is going on here! Free breakfasts were part of the deal we made. Remember!"

"Yes, I remember," Loki sighed.

"Then why did you attack me!"

"It's complicated, Narukami…. I…. Yamino, Fenrir, wait for us at the table," Loki ordered.

They stared at him in confusion for a moment, before they turned and headed towards the table.

"Daddy's acting weird again."

Yamino merely nodded in response.

Loki stared at Fenrir for a moment, unsure of how to proceed. He didn't want Fenrir to hear what he had to say. Softly he murmured a spell, that would temporarily limit his puppy child's hearing.

"Okay, we can talk now." Loki whispered and quietly explained his dream in vivid detail to Narugami

"What!" Narugami exclaimed loudly, causing Yamino and Fenrir to stare at them.

"Will you be quiet!" Loki whispered furiously. Looking up, he smiled at his two sons and said, "Don't worry, boys, we'll eat in a few minutes."

"Big Brother, what's going on?"

"I don't know, I can't hear them," Fenrir whimpered.

"What!"

"Daddy must have done it. He doesn't want me to hear their conversation."

"What? Why?" Yamino questioned his brother, who just shrugged in response.

"You need to talk to the Norns!" Narugami whispered to Loki

"I don't trust them!" Loki hissed back.

"Believe me, I understand. I mean, you know that Verdandi's not my favorite person after what she did, but… Loki, you need to talk to them," Narugami insisted.

"Yes, but."

"It may have just been an ordinary nightmare. A terribly frightening one, admittedly, but… You could be worrying yourself over nothing! You won't know unless you ask them!" Narugami advised. "Come on, Loki!

"I'll think about it, over breakfast," was Loki's only answer.

* * *

... 

Yamino was confused. It had been a very strange day. First with waking up to find his father sleeping next to him, and then refusing to leave his side for the next few hours. He had even tried to help with the chores.

Then Narugami arrived for breakfast. His father promptly attacked Narugami at first, for some strange reason. Then they huddled together, whispering in a corner, with Narugami occasionally looking up to stare at him. That staring continued all throughout breakfast, even as Narugami gulped down his food. Not even calling him "Four-Eyes" once.

Shortly after breakfast Loki had called Mayura to tell her that he'd be out of town for a few days. A lie, that his father refused to explain.

Then Narugami left, only to return an hour later with the Norns in tow. Loki had made it clear that he wanted Yamino and Fenrir to wait for him in the kitchen. And if his sons' curiosity got the better of them, Loki had even asked Ecchan to stand guard.

Yamino looked at the study door in confusion, as Ecchan glared at him in an attempt to look fierce. "What's going on?"

* * *

"Do you know why I asked Narukami to bring you here?" 

"Yes, Lord Loki," Verdandi answered. "I'm afraid that you do have good reason to fear the dream that you had this morning."

"What!" Narugami gasped.

"It was a premonition?" Loki gasped, his chest tightening.

"Yes."

"When?" Loki asked fearfully.

"Within a fortnight."

"I understand," Loki murmured numbly.

"We'll show ourselves out, Lord Loki."

"I'm really sorry, Lord Loki," Skuld said tearfully as she left with her sisters.

Loki sat in dejected, horrified silence as he relived the dream in his mind's eye.

* * *

Yamino curiously watched as the Norns left. All three had avoided any eye contact with him whatsoever. This strange day was getting even stranger. His father exited the study, his face ashen. "Master Loki, are you all right?" 

"I'm…. just tired. I'm going back to bed.'

"Well, you did get up awfully early this morning, Master Loki."

"Yamino, I need to talk to you, please come with me."

"Yes, Master Loki."

Loki sleepily headed up the stairs as a noise from outside the house gained Yamino's attention.

"Oh, the mail's arrived! Maybe my order has arrived as well!" Yamino beamed as he headed towards the door.

Loki gasped. "Yamino, I need to talk to you!"

"In a moment, Master Loki. Just let me get the mail first."

"No, now, Yamino!" Loki's voice thundered.

Stunned, Yamino turned to face his father.

"Yamino, you're not to leave the house, for any reason, whatsoever! Not even to get the mail."

"Huh?"

"Do I make myself clear?"

"But, the shopping!"

"Narukami can do the shopping."

"I can?" Narugami asked stunned.

"I'll pay you a normal hourly wage."

"All right!"

"But, Master Loki, I don't understand," Yamino whimpered.

"I order it…" Loki started as he turned to head towards his room, "as your father."

Yamino just stared after Loki in disbelief.

"Oooh, you've been grounded. I mean, it sure looks like you've been grounded," Fenrir said gleefully. "Yamino's been grounded! Yamino's been grounded!"

"Fenrir!" Loki chastised.

"Sorry, Daddy!" Fenrir apologized, and then to his brother he whispered, " You're so grounded."

Yamino ignored his brother, and instead thought about the strange events of the day. They all added up to one thing. "Master Loki!" Yamino blurted out, but Loki continued on towards his room. "Father…. Is someone going to kill me?" Yamino asked plaintively, which caused Loki to stop in his tracks.

"Huh?" Fenrir gasped.

Loki grimaced, the Yamino Detective Agency struck again. He didn't dare turn around, he didn't want Yamino to see his face. "Just stay inside, Yamino, please," Loki begged before heading off to his room.

* * *

Three days later. 

Yamino heard the doorbell ring, and a male voice on the other side said, "Package delivery."

"Please leave it at the door," Yamino requested.

"You need to sign for it."

"But, um…"

"If you don't sign for it, I'll have to take it back."

"But, um…" Yamino wondered where his father and Narugami had wandered off to.

"Come on, it's heavy."

"But, um…."

"Look, this is my last delivery for the day. If you sign for it, I can go home. If you don't, I have to drive all the way back to the warehouse. It's a two hour round trip," the delivery man whined. "All you have to do is sign for it. Please, it'll just take a minute."

Yamino considered it for a moment, surely it wouldn't hurt to open the door, just for a minute. It wasn't like he wasn't expecting a package. And surely, if there was some mystery assassin out to get him, he wasn't waiting outside the house 24/7. And his father told him not to leave the house, he hadn't said anything about answering the door.

"All right, I'm sorry…," Yamino started as he opened the door to see the delivery man grinning at him. "What?"

"Hello, Yamino," the delivery man greeted sinisterly as Yamino felt something rip into his side.

"Yamino, you weren't supposed to open the door!" Fenrir chastised. "I'm going to tell, Daddy!"

"Hello, Fenrir," The delivery man grinned at the puppy as Yamino fell to the floor with a sick thud.

"Yamino!" Fenrir gasped, and then started to growl at the stranger. "I'll rip your throat out for that, you bastard!"

"Oops, time for me to go!"

Fenrir tried to carry out his threat, but the man dissipated before he had the chance. Leaving Fenrir pissed off and slightly confused. But he realized that there was no time for that. "Daddy! Daddy!" Fenrir howled at the top of his lungs.

Loki and Narugami heard Fenrir's howling from the kitchen, and quickly rushed to the foyer to see what was wrong.

"Yamino?" Loki screamed. He knelt down next to his son and gently examined the wound and the knife sticking out of it..

Yamino moaned weakly.

"Shhhhhhhhhh… rest," Loki soothed as he used his magic to gently remove the knife from his son's side. He glared at it for a brief moment, before tending to his son's wound.

* * *

Loki studied the knife thoughtfully. Trying to see if he could discern any secrets from it. 

"Well, at least Yamino is okay," Narugami said, but then he noticed Loki's worried expression. "I mean, he should recover, right? And by the time he does, the fortnight period will be over. Right, Loki?"

Loki threw the knife up into the air and used his staff on it. An evil aura hissed out of it, horrifying both Loki and Narugami.

"The knife was… "Narugami began.

"Poisoned," Loki finished. "It's not over yet.," Loki murmured, his face ashen.

* * *

"Yamino," Loki murmured softly as he sat on the bed next to his unconscious youngest son. 

"He's burning up, Daddy."

Loki placed his hand on his ill child's forehead. "The knife was tipped with a mystical poison," He somberly informed Fenrir.

"But, you can cure him, can't you, Daddy?"

"I don't know, Fenrir. I.." Loki started, trying to fight back the tears. "Stay with your brother."

"Yes, Daddy."

"Let me know… if his condition worsens."

"Yes, Daddy."

* * *

"Loki," Narugami started, as he watched an exhausted Loki frantically tear through several books. Ecchan was helping in the search. 

"There's nothing in these books!"

"You should get some rest."

"How can I do that, when my son is…"

"There's got to be a way to cure him. I bet if we…"

"Leave."

"What?"

"This is your father's fault, you know."

"Yeah, I know."

"I don't want you here!"

"But, I can help, Loki."

"Go!" Loki screamed as he used his powers to toss Narugami across the room.

"Loki," Narugami could see the tears welling up in the child God's eyes. "Get some rest, okay," Narugami said gently as he left the room.

* * *

"This is stupid! The great Midgard serpent dying from poison. Stupid! ……………I miss your cooking. The old man can't cook worth spit. And the takeout that Narugami brings, well, he usually eats most of it himself. So, you better get better! You hear!" Fenrir barked fiercely at his brother. 

"Big Brother," Yamino moaned in his delirium.

"Get better, please, Yamino," Fenrir whimpered.

"How is he?" A pink haired girl with glasses asked.

"He's not doing so good, Hel. He's…. Hel!" Fenrir stared horrified at his sister for a moment and then frantically made a beeline for their father.

"Fenrir, wait! I'm not here to…."

* * *

"Daddy! Daddy, come quick!" 

"Fenrir, what? Is Yamino?" Loki asked fearfully.

"Daddy, Hel's here."

"No. Please no," Loki whispered horrified.

"I'm not here to claim him, Father," Hel stated softly as she entered the study.

Loki sighed with relief.

"Yet."

Loki gasped.

"His time grows short. Soon, I'll have to come to claim him."

"How soon?" Loki managed to force out.

"A week."

Loki slumped back into his chair, ghostly pale.

"But, he can still be cured, can't he, Hel? Daddy?" Fenrir asked earnestly.

"Yes, but you must hurry. His death grows more definite by the hour."

"How do I…. cure him?"

"I don't know, Father. I'm sorry." She hated to have to be the bearer of this news. To see the pain it caused him. And the idea of having to claim a member of her own family sickened her to no end. "I… I have to go back now."

"Hel, wait!" Loki hugged his daughter. "I don't…I…"

"I know, Father."

"Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Father." With that, she returned to her world. Leaving a very shaken Loki behind.

"Daddy?" Fenrir whimpered.

"I'm going to go sit with your brother for awhile."

"I'll come too, Daddy." Fenrir started to follow his father.

Loki paused at the door, not turning around. "Fenrir, I'd like to be alone with him."

"Daddy," Fenrir whimpered.

"Please," Loki begged.

"Okay," Fenrir whimpered.

* * *

Loki watched his son's labored breathing for a few moments, and wept.

* * *

A few hours later in the study….

Fenrir sat on Loki's lap, as they both looked through various books, hoping to find a lead on a cure.

Mayura bounded in cheerfully at first, but then, she noticed that something was wrong. Things were dusty, and horrible smells were coming from the direction of the kitchen. "Where's Yamino?"

"……….."

"Loki? What's wrong? You look like you've been crying," Mayura stated as she eyed Loki with concern.

"Yamino's sick. But, it's nothing that you need to worry about," Loki lied, his stomach churning.

"You wouldn't be crying if it was nothing."

"…………" Loki didn't know what to say. How could she suddenly be so astute, he wondered.

"He could die, couldn't he?"

"…………."

Eyeing his pained expression, Mayura quickly grabbed the phone and started to dial.

"Mayura, what are you doing!"

"Calling for help!"

"What! You can't do that!"

"But, Loki, shouldn't we take him to the hospital?" Mayura asked.

"A hospital won't be able to help him, Mayura," Loki responded somberly.

"But, why?" Mayura asked. But, before Loki could think of a response, a portal suddenly opened up next to Mayura. The sight of the portal caused her to panic and she tripped over the phone cord and onto the floor.

"Mayura!" Loki exclaimed as he ran to the fallen girl and examined her.

"Daddy?"

"She'll be okay," Loki said and placed a couch pillow under her head.

"Stupid girl. Always doing idiot things like that," Fenrir muttered under his breath.

"Did you say something, Fenrir?"

"Nothing, Daddy!"

"Loki, I came as soon as I heard!" Freya exclaimed as she entered the room with Freyr and Heimdall following close behind "What's that?"

"Some sort of portal," Loki answered in a tired voice.

"Not that, that!" Freya exclaimed pointing at something on the floor. She reached to pick it up and studied it for a moment. Then she cautiously opened it up. "It's a message for you, Loki."

"What?" Loki asked, looking at the piece of parchment that she had handed him. "'A thing made of light will cure your son. This portal will take you to where that item is.' Huh?"

"Well, that's helpful, isn't it?"

"I don't know. I sense great evil coming from this portal. The same evil aura that came from the knife."

"Then it must be a trap!" Freya exclaimed.

"Yes. However, it may be the only way to save Yamino." Loki stared at a photo of his family for a moment. "I don't have much of a choice, do I?"

"Loki," Freya whispered softly.

"I'll go with you."

"I thought I told you to leave," Loki stated coldly.

"Since when do I listen to you," Narugami responded coolly.

"Good point."

"I want to come, too, Daddy!"

"But, someone needs to take care of Yamino."

"I can do that, Loki," Freya volunteered. "I'd be happy to help in any way. And I'm sure that Mayura would be willing to help, as well," Freya stated, as she noticed that Mayura was still unconscious on the floor. "Once she wakes up, that is."

"I'm not so sure that Mayura should help."

"Oh, it'll be fine, Loki. Mayura is compassionate and caring and strong and…." Freyr babbled.

"That's not what I was talking about," Loki sighed. He was worried that Yamino might say something in his delirium that would confuse Mayura.

"Daddy, please! I want to help save Yamino! I might be able to sniff out the cure!"

Loki sighed and stared at his son for a few moments pondering his request. "All right, Fenrir, you can come, too. I'm just going to check on your brother before we go."

"Okay, Daddy!"

"All right, a good and noble quest! I haven't been on one of those in awhile."

"Narugami, you do remember that you and Jormungand are destined to kill each other, right?" Heimdall sweat dropped.

"Come Mjollnir! Let us partake on this journey!" Narugami exclaimed as he charged into the portal.

"Idiot," Heimdall sighed.

"Narugami! You're supposed to wait for Loki!" Freya yelled after him.

* * *

"Please, hold on, Yamino," Loki pleaded as he placed a hand on his son's forehead. It was still terribly hot. Even the magical cold compresses he had conjured up, hadn't helped. Yamino moaned and shifted causing the blanket to move down on the bed. As Loki reached down to pull the blanket back up, he noticed something in Yamino's hand It was a rubber spatula. Loki blinked. 

"I gave it to him, Master Loki." Ecchan said.

"Oh. Very thoughtful of you, Ecchan."

"Master Loki?"

"Please stay with him, Ecchan."

"Yes, Master Loki."

Loki turned to leave, when he had a thought. He quickly walked over to the TV and turned it on. He changed the channels until he got to the right one, the cooking channel, and adjusted the volume slightly. "If it seems to do more harm than good…. If it disturbs his rest, please, turn it off, Ecchan."

"Yes, Master Loki."

* * *

Two days later….

"I wish Loki was here," Mayura whispered with tears in her eyes. "Yamino's illness reminds me of… Mama…" With that she started crying even harder.

"It'll be okay, my sweet" Freyr said in an attempt to reassure her. "Loki's looking for a cure."

"Yes, but.."

Heimdall groaned as Freyr hovered around the crying Mayura. Freyr ignored everything else but his beloved, and consequently bumped into his sister as she ascended the stairs carrying a tray.

"Freyr, will you leave, already! You almost made me drop the broth!" Freya glared at her brother, as she tried to keep the items on the tray from tipping over.

"I'm sorry, dear sister. Here, let me get the door for you," Freyr smiled apologetically as he turned the knob.

The quartet heard the sound of hissing on the other side.

"Oh, no. Oh, please, no," Freya whispered horrified. She frantically entered the room only to realize that what she feared was true, Yamino had reverted to his serpent form.

"Ya…. Yamino has turned into a…… Mystery…." Mayura stated in utter horror.

"Uh, this is bad," Freyr gasped.

"Yeah, a delirious giant serpent, would be," Heimdall responded, as he started backing slowly away from the door.

"Heh…. I hope you're not angry about our repeated attempts to kill your father?" Freyr asked.

At that the giant serpent opened his fangs wide.

"Guess you are."

"Run, you idiot!" Heimdall yelled, as he grabbed Freyr and started pulling him along.

The quartet ran down to the kitchen with the serpent following close behind them. Smashing through walls like they were tissue paper. The kitchen gave Mayura an idea, and she bravely turned to face the serpent.

"Yamino, please! Remember who you are! You make delicious cheesecake and cookies and tea… and… You're a good man… a kind man…. Not a…..giant monster with…. really big fangs."

"Miss… May…ura?" The serpent hissed.

"Yamino! You can hear me! You've got to fight this, Yamino! It's not you!"

"Yes it is."

"Shut up, Heimdall! What are you doing here, anyways?" Freya asked.

"Freyr wanted to see you. I just stupidly came with him."

"Don't worry my Japanese beauty, I shall rescue you!" Freyr exclaimed as he picked Mayura up and carried her off.

"You dolt! Mayura was getting through to him!" Freya yelled as she ran after her brother.

A lone, shadowed figure smirked as he watched the scene in front of him. "This is quite amusing, really. But, the time for play is over. It's time for you to go visit your Daddy now. Right after you visit a few 'friends' of mine."

The four huddled behind the couch as the serpent rampaged around the house in his delirium.

"We should make a break for the window," Heimdall suggested.

"We can't leave him!" Freya exclaimed. She had no intention of failing her beloved Loki.

"Maybe you can't, but I can! I don't give a damn about Loki's monstrous spawn!" Heimdall stated coolly as he crawled towards the window.

"Huh!" Mayura gasped, staring at Heimdall's crawling hindquarters in confusion. "Yamino…. Loki's… spawn… Mystery…." Mayura sweat dropped.

After several crashing sounds, an eerie silence filled the air.

"Uh, where did he go?" Freya asked, confused, as she looked around, from the behind the couch, at the trashed study. "Did he pass out?" She asked hopefully. Slowly she tiptoed out into the hall.

"Freya!" Freyr screamed, desperate to stop his sister.

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Freya glared at her brother, before heading off to look for Yamino.

After a few painstaking minutes, Freya frantically ran back into the study with Ecchan in tow. "He's gone! There's no sign of him leaving the house. It's like he just… disappeared."

"Maybe he went through the portal?" Freyr pondered.

"Problem solved, let's go eat," Heimdall grinned, rubbing his stomach.

"Heimdall!" Freya glared at him furiously.

"Yamino," Mayura sobbed.

* * *

Meanwhile, at a tavern on the other world. 

"What a cute puppy!"

"Here, want some food?"

Fenrir yipped gleefully as he wolfed down the food offered to him. He turned to say something to his father, but, when he saw the old man's seriousness, he decided to keep it to himself.

"'A thing made of light will cure your son.' What in the hell is that supposed to mean!"

"Beats me. Waitress!" Narugami waved at the woman passing by.

"This is useless! We've been here for two days now, and we haven't found anything that could help Yamino."

"This ale is good, though, " Narugami grinned. He turned to see Loki glaring daggers at him. "I'm sorry, Loki. I just haven't had ale like this in a long time. It's good! And the food here is great, as well! Such big portions, too!" Narugami beamed, rubbing his stomach in satisfaction. He noticed that Loki's plate was untouched. "Say, Loki, are you going to eat that?"

"Narukami, we're here to find a cure for my son! Or have you forgotten that?"

"No, I haven't. I just think it's important to keep up our strength. If we don't…." Narugami started, only to be interrupted by the sound of ringing bells. At that sound, practically the entire tavern erupted into a panic. Narugami, Fenrir, and Loki watched on in confusion as people frantically grabbed their things and headed towards the door. "What's… going on?"

Loki, Fenrir, and Narugami followed the customers outside, with Narugami still holding his cup of ale. There was a man standing in the center of the town square, ringing the bell, and yelling at the top of his lungs.

"Evacuate the town! There is a monster on the rampage!"

"Monster?"

"A Giant serpent!"

"Giant…serpent…. Jormungand! He's here! Where?" Loki questioned the man frantically.

But, "Run for your lives!" was the only other thing the town crier said, before fleeing himself.

"Uh, Daddy, I don't think that we have to worry about that," Fenrir said, pointing his paw. Loki and Narugami turned to look in the direction he was pointing.

"Wow, I had almost forgotten how big he was in serpent form," Narugami sweat dropped, as he dropped his cup of ale.

"That's not his full size."

"Mother, will you run already!" A young man yelled at a middle-aged woman who was casually standing around staring at the giant serpent that was off in the distance.

"Why?" The woman huffed in response, annoyed at her son. "Lina Inverse is in town. I saw her at the buffet just this morning. Gobbling away as always. She'll slay the beast for sure."

"And blow up half the town at the same time. Come on, Mother!" the young man exclaimed as he dragged his mother along.

"Slay?" Loki whispered horrified.

"Daddy?" Fenrir whimpered.

"Jormungand!" Loki screamed as he ran off to save his son.

* * *

"Miss Lina, is it just my imagination, or, is the monster acting a bit…. Weird?" Amelia asked, staring at the creature in front of her with confused disbelief.

"Uh, yeah, you could say that," Lina answered twitching.

The giant serpent in front of them, looked like it was sweeping. Or at least, it was attempting to sweep. It seemed like it was trying to clean up the mess it had made.

"Definitely not your typical monster behavior," Zelgadis agreed scratching his head.

"What should we do, Lina?"

"Uh," was Lina's only answer.

"The poor thing seems sick," Amelia sniffled.

"Amelia, that only makes it more dangerous," Zelgadis groaned. "Regardless, we have to stop it. It's already destroyed several homes."

"Agreed. Gourry, do your thing," Lina ordered.

"What, why me? Why don't you use your magic?"

"Because something seems odd about that monster, that's why."

"Huh?" Gourry asked confused, before it finally dawned on him. "Oh, I get it."

"Don't hurt him!" Loki screamed as he ran in between his son and the strangers. His tiny body not doing much to protect his son.

"Light, come forth!"

"What?" Loki gasped as he saw a blonde haired man swooping at his son with a sword gleaming with a blinding light. "No.." The sword went through the giant serpent, and he morphed back into his human form. "Noooo!"

"Brother," Fenrir whimpered quietly. Growling he turned into his giant wolf form and bared his fangs at the people responsible.

"Four-Eyes," Narugami whispered horrified.

"He… was really a human? Not a monster?" Gourry murmured softly.

"He wasn't a monster! He was sick! He didn't know what he was doing!" Loki yelled in angry grief at Lina, Gourry, Zel, and Amelia. He raised his staff, preparing to cast a spell.

"Loki, wait! Don't hurt them! They thought they were being attacked by a giant serpent! Uh, which of course, they were. Can you really blame them for defending themselves? And… uh…."

"I don't care!" Loki screamed, wanting so badly to take his rage out on them. But, at the same time, he knew that Thor was right, and cursed that fact with all his heart..

Narugami stared at Yamino's body in confusion. "Um, Loki, if Yamino's dead, wouldn't he have stayed in his true form? Not to mention, there's a decided lack of blood around here. Isn't that a bit weird?"

Loki heard Thor's words, but they didn't register. Instead, he knelt down next to his son's body. "I'm so sorry, Yamino. I failed you when you needed me the most."

Fenrir heard something odd. He could hear heartbeats, three heartbeats, coming from the direction of where his brother fell. His daddy's, Thor's, and….

* * *

Yamino could hear his big brother growling something about ripping people to shreds and eating their entrails, and he could feel something wet trickling onto him. Groggily he struggled to open his eyes. He was greeted by an unusual sight. The sight of his father crying. Confused, he reached up to wipe away one of his father's tears. 

"Don't cry, Father… Master Loki."

"Yamino!" Loki cried out, quickly embracing his son. "But, the sword… how?"

"He's alive? That's great, Daddy!" Fenrir yipped gleefully, then quickly turned his attention back to Lina, Zel, Gourry, and Amelia. "Touch them and die!" Fenrir growled.

"Uh, did that obscenely big wolf just call that little kid Daddy?" Lina asked confused.

"And the snake… man referred to him as father… too." Zel sweat dropped.

"Weird family."

"No kidding."

"Scary, too."

"Yup."

"Nice doggie. Please don't kill us," Amelia pleaded.

Loki continued to embrace his son in stunned, relieved disbelief. "'A thing made of light will cure your son.' That sword was it?" Loki questioned as he placed his hand on his son's forehead, it was cool.

"Master Loki?" Yamino asked, still confused and groggy. In response, his father smiled warmly at him.

"Shhhhhhhh…. Rest now, Yamino."

* * *

The group had made their way to the nearest inn still standing. The innkeeper assumed that Lina had slayed the beast, and had offered them free room and board as thanks. Loki was more than a little ticked off at the notion of someone celebrating the idea of his child's 'death', but, was too exhausted to do anything other than give the innkeeper a harsh glare. 

After the group got Yamino settled into bed, a satisfied Loki headed over to the other bed in the room. He fell asleep, almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. Fenrir curled up next to his father, and promptly dozed off as well.

"Wow, that was fast," Zel sweat dropped.

"He hasn't slept for days," Narugami replied.

"Aw, they both look so cute!" Amelia smiled.

"Yeah, to look at him, you'd never know that, that cute puppy intended on eating us, a few hours ago," Zel said dryly.

"Come on, we can talk in my room," Lina suggested, as she motioned them towards the door.

* * *

"The Sword of Light can absorb magic spells. It simply freed him of the curse he was under," Lina informed Narugami. 

"Uh, but, that serpent form is his true form."

"Really?" Lina sweat dropped.

"Yeah, Loki cast a spell on him to make him look human."

"Hmmm… Interesting," Lina pondered thoughtfully. "You don't suppose that Loki would teach me that spell, do you?" Lina asked earnestly.

"……" Narugami sweat dropped.

"Is Loki a snake himself?" Gourry asked.

"No. Well, my father thinks he is, but, not in the way you mean."

"Then, is Yamino's mother a snake?"

"No."

"Then how?"

"……… I've never really thought about it. It's just the way things are in my world."

"Oh. Anyhow, it's lucky that you didn't come any sooner."

"Why?"

"The sword was just recently returned to me."

"Really, huh? Well, that was lucky," Narugami grinned.

"Yeah, 'lucky'," Lina frowned. They hadn't seen the sword for months, when it had suddenly just materialized out of nowhere. At the time, she hadn't thought much of it. Thinking that the guy from the other world had just decided to give the Dark Star weapon back to Gourry. After all, it had been Gourry's family heirloom. But now, she found the timing of it rather suspicious. "Narugami, how did this all start?"

"Loki had a nightmare premonition about Yamino."

"A 'nightmare'," Lina gasped. Naw, it couldn't be, she dismissed quickly. Why would the Lord of Nightmares be interested in Loki and his progeny. She laughed at her paranoia, and decided to focus on something else. "Come on, guys, let's go get something to eat."

"Great! You know, you guys should really taste Yamino's cooking. It's great!"

"Really?" Lina asked starry eyed.

"Yeah! Maybe later, he'll be able to cook something for you."

* * *

"Are you sure that you're up to this, Yamino?" Loki asked, eyeing his son with concern. 

"Yes, Master Loki!" Yamino beamed as he happily chopped lettuce.

"You know, for a giant serpent capable of crushing the world in his coils, he sure is a nice guy," Amelia said, as she intently watched Yamino go about his work..

"Yup, and a great cook, too!" Lina grinned as she rubbed her stomach. "Amelia, have you been taking notes?"

"Yes, Miss Lina. Though, I haven't heard of some of these ingredients."

"Don't worry, I'll provide you with alternate ingredients, if need be!" Yamino told her with a smile.

"Thank you, Mister Yamino!"

"Watch out, guys, coming through!" The new busboy ordered.

"Narukami, you took a job here?" Loki asked.

"Yeah! I even get tips. Isn't that great?"

"But, you won't be able to use the money on Midgard or Asgard."

"I won't."

"Uh, yeah."

"Oh….damn!" Narugami cursed, balling up his fists and slamming them into the nearest wall. The force of it caused one of the coins in his pocket to fall onto the floor.

Loki picked up the coin and studied it for a moment. "Though, this is gold. If you melt it down, then…" He began, but then he noticed that Narugami was handing out the rest of his earnings to the tavern's customers. "Uh, never mind," Loki sweat dropped.

* * *

"Your plan failed." 

"No, it didn't."

"Loki still lives."

"Yes, but that was part of the plan."

"What!"

"My dear, Odin, killing Loki is the last thing that my mistress wants."

"What! You said that she wanted to prevent Ragnarok!"

"She does."

"Then why!"

"Why? That's a secret." Xellos said with a grin. "Goodbye, Odin."

**Disclaimer:** _This fan fic is meant as pure, harmless fun, and as such no profit is being made from it. The Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok characters and the Slayers characters belong to their respective creators_


	2. Chapter 2

**Family Crisis**

Pt 2

By Kali

"Don't worry, Freya. Everything will be fine."

"'Fine?'" Freya stared at her brother in mortified horror. "Freyr, you idiot! I lost Loki's child!"

"Loki's…. child," Mayura gasped, looking at Freya in wide-eyed disbelief.

"Heimdall, get Verdandi," Freya growled.

"Are you kidding? I want to see Loki try to worm his way out of this!" Heimdall answered with a smirk.

"You said earlier that Yamino was Loki's spawn," Mayura stated dazedly as she pointed at Heimdall for a few seconds before turning her attention back to Freya. "And you just said that…."

"Forget what I just said. This is all just a bad dream. A really, really bad dream."

"No it isn't."

"Heimdall!"

………………………………...

"I'm gonna miss you, so much!" Narugami sobbed to the item in front of him.

"Huh?" Amelia asked, looking on in confusion. Narugami was sitting on a stool at the bar and holding a cup of ale reverently in his hands.

"I'm afraid that Narukami can't hold his liquor on Midgard," Loki answered. "I'm not sure why. He's in the same form."

"Oh," Amelia twitched. She was about to say something more, when she heard Lina and Zel arguing with Gourry, and turned to look in their direction.

"It's really none of our business," Zelgadis scolded, waving his finger dismissively at Gourry.

"But… They are going to be leaving soon, and then I'll never know."

"Gourry!"

"But, Lina, I want to know. Don't you?"

"Not really," Lina answered, but it was a lie. The truth was, she was just as curious as Gourry.

"You want to know what?" Loki asked curious.

"Uh, well…" Gourry began.

"Please, ignore him," Lina begged.

"I'd like to know…. Um… well…"

"Yes?" Loki asked, slightly annoyed.

"Um… about your kids… um… the wolf and the snake… you know, um well…"

Gourry continued to babble on nonsensically, but Loki managed to get the gist of it. "Why they were born as such?" Loki sweat dropped.

"Uh, yeah…"

"……………"

"Please, ignore him," Lina begged again. "He's an idiot."

"…………"

"Lina," Gourry responded in a hurt voice.

"I don't know," Loki answered.

"No, trust me, he's an idiot," Lina responded with a sigh.

"No, not about that. About my children. It just happened that way. I don't know why."

"Didn't that bother you?" Gourry innocently asked.

"Uh." Was Loki's only response.

"Mister Gourry!" Amelia exclaimed horrified.

"That your kids are…"

Lina slammed her fist on top of Gourry's head in an attempt to shut him up. "Idiot!"

Zelgadis sighed and thought to himself, '_One day, Gourry's lack of tact will get him killed.'_

Amelia looked around and noticed that Yamino and Fenrir were both staring at their father, who was staring at the floor.

"Daddy?" Fenrir asked earnestly.

"………."

"Daddy!" Fenrir whimpered teary-eyed.

"It's okay, Master Loki. You don't need to answer his question," Yamino said calmly, but, his eyes betrayed a different emotion.

Loki looked up, and saw the expression in his son's eyes. In both of his sons' eyes. Both of them had been condemned as monsters by Odin. Had been kidnapped, along with their sister, from their mother's home in the dead of night. Only to be bound or banished to cold, desolate places. Bereft of any companionship, save potential prey, for countless years. It had left both of his sons with a bit of a father complex. Fenrir's was much more pronounced, but, Yamino's earnest dedication to cleaning and cooking hinted at a deep seated insecurity. Like if he was 'useful' enough, he wouldn't be considered a 'monster' and wouldn't be 'abandoned' again. Silently, Loki cursed Odin.

"We're really sorry!" Lina apologized as she held Gourry in a choke hold.

"Did your mother ever tell you about your births?" Loki asked, looking at his two sons.

"No. We didn't get to spend much time with her before we were taken," Yamino quietly answered. "And when she was with us, as Spica, she didn't talk much."

Loki cursed Odin again. "Do you want to know?"

Fenrir wagged his tail in response, while Yamino uncomfortably stared down at his own hands.

"I take it that means yes, Fenrir?"

"Yes, Daddy!"

"Yamino?"

After a few awkward minutes, Yamino answered shyly, "If you don't mind, sir."

"Okay, well…. I wasn't there when Fenrir was born, but…"

………………………………...

"Lord Loki! The mistress has been quite anxious to see you," a young, black-haired girl said in greeting to the man at the door.

"Teika," Loki grunted in response. He quickly hurried past her and into the hall. He had received a summons in the midst of a rather intriguing party, and wasn't in the mood to be polite. "Is something wrong with the baby?" Loki asked concerned.

"No…… The baby is healthy… I guess…" Teika didn't know what to say. She just stood there twitching slightly.

"You guess!" Loki started to get rather worried. The servant's behavior was rather strange. "She's only been pregnant for a few months! Where is she?"

"In her bedroom, Lord Loki."

Loki noticed then that she was carrying something in her arms. It was small, black, and it wiggled. "She got a wolf puppy? How cute. Is it for the baby?"

"……………." Teika twitched.

Loki took the puppy from Teika's arms and started to pet it. He noticed that it's eyes were still closed. "Isn't it a little young to be separated from it's mother?"

"……………"

"What's wrong with you?" Loki asked frustrated.

"…………"

"Come on, little one, let's go see Angrboda," Loki sweetly told the puppy. He glared at the servant for a moment, before heading off towards Angrboda's bedroom.

"………………" Teika continued to twitch as she followed Loki to the bedroom.

Loki glared at the servant one more time, before knocking on the door. A noticeably no longer pregnant Angrboda answered the door.

"You don't need to knock, Loki," Angrboda said with a smile and greeted her lover with a kiss. She noticed the puppy in his arms, and became somewhat nervous. "Ah, I see that you've met him."

"The puppy?"

"Yes. Our child."

"Congratulations! It's a boy!" Teika exclaimed.

"Huh?" Loki blinked, staring at the puppy in confusion. He dazedly looked back and forth between the puppy and Angrboda.

"Our baby. Yours and mine," Angrboda said nervously as she took the puppy from his arms and cuddled it to her chest.

"Uh…."

"I gave birth to him."

"Really?" Loki asked dumbfounded. Was this because of his shape changing abilities, he wondered to himself. He also wondered if someone was trying to trick the trickster. However, that was something that he might do, not Angrboda. And even then, he wouldn't lie to a lover about their child.

"Yes, Lord Loki. I was there when it happened," Teika informed him. "Believe me, it's not something that I'm going to forget anytime soon. Or, like, ever."

"Don't you feel a connection to him?" Angrboda asked plaintively. She brought the puppy up close to his face. Which caused him to take a few steps back.

The puppy whimpered.

"It's okay, little one," Loki soothed. Slowly he took the puppy from Angrboda and held him in his arms again. He stood there for a few minutes, intently watching the puppy in his arms, before sitting down on the bed. "My son," he whispered as he stroked the puppy's head. "What's his name?"

"I thought we should decide that together," Angrboda answered as she sat down next to him.

"Oh, of course. We didn't have much of a chance to discuss this before. What with the pregnancy being so short and all. That must be nice for you, huh? Not having to deal with the aches and pains and nausea of a long pregnancy."

"... I was scared. I thought I was losing our baby."

"……………. I'm sorry that I wasn't here for you."

"You're here now."

"…………………."

"Loki?"

"It's okay, it's just…. A little unusual, that's all," Loki answered. He leaned over and gave her a kiss. "It'll be okay."

"But, Odin?"

"Odin doesn't need to know."

"Can you really keep it from him?"

"I can try. I am the Trickster God, after all!"

"…………"

………………………………...

Several months later…

"Lord Loki, meet your newest child," Teika announced, holding up a rather large egg.

"Isn't that supposed to come out as something else?" Loki asked, staring at the egg.

"Yeah, well, it didn't. Frankly, I blame you."

"Is she okay?" Loki asked, staring at an unconscious Angrboda.

"……… I guess," Teika responded as she placed the egg on a pillow.

"You guess! She could be bleeding to death!" Loki lifted up the end of the blanket to look.

"Lord Loki! You shouldn't be doing that!" Teika exclaimed, as she frantically tried to pull the blanket back.down.

"She just gave birth to our second child. I have seen **it** before," Loki said with a glare. He took the blanket from her hands and pulled it back up. "Though, it didn't look like that. Is that normal?"

Teika gulped and looked underneath the blanket. "Uh, well, I don't know about 'normal', she did just give birth to an egg. But, the midwife cast a healing spell before she left, so…. The mistress should be fine.."

"Oh. So long as she's all right.

"I'll go get some clean sheets and blankets."

A few hours later, Angrboda finally awakened. The egg was to her left, washed clean, with a pillow underneath it, while Loki was sitting to her right.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yes."

"Good."

"Loki?" She asked, staring at the egg.

"Yes?"

"That's our baby, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"What is it?"

"…… I don't know."

"How are we supposed to take care of it, if we don't even know what it is? I mean, should I sit on it? Should I not sit on it?"

"Uh…."

"If I do the wrong thing, I could kill our baby!" Angrboda wailed.

"Shhhhhhhhhhh…. I can do some research to try to figure out what kind of egg it is."

Then they both noticed that Fenrir was sniffing the egg.

"This is your sibling, not food. Do you understand?" Loki asked the puppy.

"………."

"Sibling. Not food."

"Yes, Daddy."

………………………………...

"Big Brother," Yamino gasped in horror. "You thought I was food?"

"Hey! Daddy, gave you the 'sibling, not food talk', too!"

Loki coughed. "Under the circumstances, we felt it was necessary. We didn't want to take any chances. Now, back to the story."

………………………………...

"It smells like a snake egg, Daddy."

"A snake? Are you sure"

"Yes."

"Okay. Thank you, Fenrir. You've been very helpful." Loki said with a smile. He noticed that Angrboda was still pensive. "In the morning, I'll do some research. It'll be okay, Angrboda."

"………….."

………………………………...

"Your mother made up a list of things to find out. She wanted to make sure that you were well taken care of."

"How long did it take for him to hatch?"

"A couple months."

"What was it like?"

"..…… Normal, I guess, for a snake. But... we should probably get going. The others must be worried."

Yamino gulped feeling a bit nervous about going home.

"It's okay. You didn't hurt anyone," Loki assured him. He had looked at Yamino's memories, earlier, in order to make sure.

"But, Mayura…. Knows. And our home is…"

"What really matters is that everyone is okay. Mayura may write it off as a strange, mysterious event or as a dream. And if she doesn't, I'll figure something out."

………………………………...

As Yamino and Fenrir were saying goodbye to Amelia, Loki noticed that Lina was staring at him. "What?"

"You seemed to want to change the subject rather quick."

"You noticed that, huh?"

"Yeah. You had a hard time telling whether or not he was a boy or a girl, didn't you?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Loki sighed. "We had to wait until he learned how to talk before we knew for sure that he was a he."

"That must have been awkward."

"Very."

**Disclaimer: **_This fan fic is meant as pure, harmless fun, and as such no profit is being made from it. The Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok characters and the Slayers characters belong to their respective creators. Teika is a minor original character._


End file.
